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53
Section 22.—This section amends subsections 2 and 3 of Section
4 of the Requisitioned Houses and Housing (Amendment) Act,
1955, and applies the new rent limit to houses which have been
released from requisition on the owner's undertaking to accept the
occupant as a statutory tenant. Notices of increase of rent up to
this new limit must be served on the local authority as well as on
the tenant, and the local authority must be a party to any agreement
affecting the rent. (Local Authorities are liable under Section 4 (4)
of the Act of 1955 to pay part of the rent in respect of
these houses).
In connection with notices of increase served in respect of
derequisitioned properties, 46 investigations were made into the
department's records of the respective premises.
Houses Let in Lodgings.—Recent legislation in connection
with houses in multiple occupation contained in the Housing Repairs
and Rents Act, 1954, (Sections 11 and 12) has now been superseded
by Sections 36 and 90 of the Housing Act, 1957.
The general powers given to the Council under the previous
legislation, viz.—
Natural Lighting
Ventilation
Water Supply
Drainage and Sanitary Conveniences
Facilities for storage, preparation and cooking of food
and for the disposal of waste water
Prevention of overcrowding of sleeping rooms
have been retained and with regard to these items, briefly, Section
36 of the 1957 Act enables the Council to enforce standards whilst
giving the person in control of the house a choice of action; either
(a) to carry out works specified in the notice or (b) to reduce the
density of occupation, in which case possession of the whole or part
of the premises can be obtained notwithstanding the Rent Acts.
Under Section 90, the Council may, if it considers the numbers
of persons accommodated in a house let-in-lodgings to be excessive
having regard to the rooms available, serve on the person having
control of the said premises, a notice specifying the maximum number
of people permitted to occupy for sleeping purposes any room
therein. After the notice becomes operative an offence is committed
if any room is occupied contrary to the terms of such notice or
where persons of opposite sex over the age of 12 years and not living
as man and wife are allowed to occupy the same sleeping accommodation.